Bragança, Portugal

Template:Geobox Bragança (Portuguese pronunciation: [bɾɐˈɡɐ̃sɐ] or, locally, [bɾɐˈɡãsɐ]; Template:Lang-en; Template:Lang-mwl) is a city and municipality in north-eastern Portugal, capital of district of Bragança, in Alto Trás-os-Montes subregion of Portugal. In 2001, the population of the municipality was 34,774, in an area of 1173.57 km².

History

Archeological evidence permits a determination of human settlement in this region to the Paleolithic. During the Neolithic there was a growth of productive human settlements which concentrated on planting and domestication of animals, with the beginnings of a nascent religion. There are many vestiges of these ancient communities, including ceramics, agricultural implements, weights, arrowheads and modest jewellry, all forged from rock. Many of these artefacts were found in funerary mounds, such as the tumulus of Donai (mostly destroyed). There are many signs of megalthic constructions dotted throughtout the region. It is believed that the larger proto-historic communities developed in Terra Fria, probably in the final part of the Bronze Age (1000-700 A.D.). During this period, the Castro culture of fortified urban structures resulted in walled settlements, situated in elevated areas with a panoramic view, for defense. These communities were essentially survived on subsistence agriculture.

Roman colonization, which occurred late in the Roman era, resulted in the establishment of private property and movement away from the forests, in addition to organizational changes resulting administrative, material and cultural evolution.Remants of the Luso-Roman castro societies are evident in Castro of Sacóias and the Castro of Avelãs. In these excavations, modern archaeologists have discovered funerary remains, coins and implements. The Castro of Avelãs (about three kilometres from Bragança) was an important centre on the military road to Astorga, although there are many examples (in Alfaião, Aveleda, Carrazedo, Castro de Avelãs, Donai, França, Gostei, Meixedo, Pinela, Quintela Lampaças, etc.) of the Roman presence.

The area was dominated by two ethnic communities: the Zoelae, with their seat in Castro de Avelãs, and a Lusitanian civitas under the stewardship of the Baniense in the southern part of the district. A Latin map, Atlas de Gotha by Justus Perthes, mentioned three settlements within this region: Aquae Flaviae (Chaves), Veniatia (Vinhais) and Zoelae (its seat in Zoelas, today Castro de Avelãs), without mentioning any reference to a name similar to Bragança. During Roman colonization, it was part of Gallaecia and dependent administratively on Astorga.

Historically the city has been important as the seat of the House of Bragança, which provided the kings of Portugal from 1640 to 1910 and the emperors of Brazil from 1822 to 1889; their feudal castle (built 1187) still remains. Catherine of Bragança became the queen consort (1662) of Charles II of England. An episcopal see, Bragança was the capital of the historical Trás-os-Montes province.

Geography

Olive trees along the slopes of Bragança

Physical geography

Bragança lies on a branch of the Sabor River south of the Culebra Mountains, 255 km northeast of Porto, 515 km from Lisbon and 22 km from the Spanish border.

Climate

Climate data for Bragança
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	9.0 (48.2)	11.0 (51.8)	14.0 (57.2)	16.0 (60.8)	19.0 (66.2)	24.0 (75.2)	29.0 (84.2)	29.0 (84.2)	25.0 (77.0)	18.0 (64.4)	13.0 (55.4)	10.0 (50.0)	9.0 (48.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	0 (32)	1.0 (33.8)	3.0 (37.4)	5.0 (41.0)	8.0 (46.4)	12.0 (53.6)	14.0 (57.2)	14.0 (57.2)	12.0 (53.6)	8.0 (46.4)	4.0 (39.2)	2.0 (35.6)	0 (32)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	96 (3.8)	75 (3.0)	44 (1.7)	62 (2.4)	70 (2.8)	39 (1.5)	20 (0.8)	19 (0.7)	45 (1.8)	85 (3.3)	86 (3.4)	119 (4.7)	7.9 (0.31)
Source: Instituto de Meteorologia.

The climate in Bragança (the northeastern most district capital Portuguese city) is influenced by the distance from the coast and the elevation. It is very similar to the continental climate of the Spanish Meseta and other European regions removed from the influence of the ocean, which means long rigorous winters (even by European standards) and short hot summers. Snow in winter is very common and can last for several days. The high in January is around 9°C while the August and July high is around 29°C. The January low hovers around the freezing point. It has been known to snow in May, and winter temperatures can fall to as low as -18°C. The annual mean is around 12°C. The mean total rainfall in a year is 689 mm. The year of 2005 was particularly dry in Portugal and Bragança suffered water shortages and devastating forest fires in the rural areas.

Human geography

A perspective of the settlements around the base of the Castle of Bragança

The parish of Parada on the periphery of the municipality of Bragança

The rural scenry of the parish of Carragosa

Of the 18 Portuguese historical district capitals, Bragança is the farthest from Lisbon, the national capital. The seat of the municipality is the city of Bragança, which consists of two parishes (Sé, 10,129 residents, and Santa Maria, 3900 inhabitants) and has a population of approximately 14,029.

Bragança pertains to an area referred to as the Terra Fria Transmontana (Cold Transmontana Lands). Within the NUTS nomenclature, Bragança is part of the Alto Trás-os-Montes subregion, along with three other municipalities. Its connection to this region are formalized within various associations, including the Associação de Municípios de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (Municipal Association of Tr´s-os Montes and Alto Douro), as part of the Associação de Municípios da Terra Fria (constituted by the municipalities of Bragança, Vinhais, Vimioso and Miranda do Douro), the Associação Comercial e Industrial de Bragança (Commercial Association of Bragança), the district Núcleo Empresarial do Distrito de Bragança (Business Nucleus of the District of Bragança)), the Região de Turismo do Nordeste Transmontano (Tourist Region of Nordeste Transmontano) and the Parque Natural de Montesinho (Montesinho Natural Park). Bragança is also affiliated with the Associação do Pacto do Eixo Atlântico, along with 17 municipalities in the northwest peninsula, whose objective is to implement policy that strategically support socio-economic and socio-cultural objectives of the communities along the Portuguese-Spanish border region with Galicia. This is an important political relationship since 1999, as Bragança is of significant size to motivate economic activity in the northern portion of the Iberian Peninsula. Its peripheral place in the urban hierarchy of Portugal has contributed to the political, administrative and populational concentration of many regional and national associations, administrative delegations and regional directorates

The neighbouring municipalities are Vimioso in the southeast, Macedo de Cavaleiros in the southwest and Vinhais in the west.

It is administratively divided into 49 civil parishes, of which included are:

Alfaião Aveleda Babe Baçal Calvelhe Carragosa Carrazedo Castrelos Castro de Avelãs Coelhoso Deilão Donai Espinhosela Faílde França Gimonde Gondesende

Gostei Grijó de Parada Izeda Macedo do Mato Meixedo Milhão Mós Nogueira Outeiro Parada Paradinha Nova Parâmio Pinela Pombares Quintanilha Quintela de Lampaças

Rabal Rebordainhos Rebordãos Refèga Rio de Onor Rio Frio Salsas Samil Santa Comba de Rossas Santa Maria (Bragança) São Julião de Palácios São Pedro de Sarracenos Sé (Bragança) Sendas Serapicos Sortes Zoio

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Portugal

The municipality of Bragança is twinned with:

• Zamora, Castile and León, Spain (1984);
• León, Castile and León, Spain.

Economy

Economically the region still produces olive oil, grains, chestnuts and livestock, especially sheep. In recent years agriculture has suffered a decline with the abandonment of the villages and the aging of the rural population. In many villages there are not enough children to maintain the rural schools, which are gradually being closed by the government. Present-day Bragança is a city of services with a dependence on state-run institutions like the Polytechnical Institute of Bragança and the regional hospital for jobs.

Due to its location near the Spanish border, the city receives tourists from Zamora, León, Salamanca, Asturias and elsewhere.

Transportation

The city has a small airport: Bragança Airport (BGC), with scheduled flights to Vila Real (VRL) and Lisbon (LIS). Bragança Airport is located north of the city, near Aveleda and Montesinho Natural Park.

Bragança and Viseu are the only two Portuguese district capital cities without a rail service. The principal motorway is the estrada IP 4 connecting the cities of Bragança, Mirandela, Vila Real, Amarante, Penafiel and Oporto (Porto).

Other roads connect to the cities of Chaves, Valpaços, Macedo de Cavaleiros and Miranda do Douro (Miranda de I Douro), as well to towns nearby: Vinhais and Vimioso (Bimiouso) and the international border at Quintanilha.

Architecture

Notable landmarks in the city include the 12th-century Domus Municipalis (Portugal's oldest and largest town hall), the Renaissance cathedral, and the old town walls, which are still well preserved and look down on the river and the modern city. In the city there is a well kept museum.

Education

Bragança has a state-run technical college of higher education, the polytechnic institute Instituto Politécnico de Bragança (Polytechnical Institute of Bragança).

Religion

Bragança pertains to the Diocese of Bragança/Miranda; under the archdiocese of Braga.

Notable citizens

• Mendo Alão (c. 1000; Brittany — c. 1050) - a nobleman and medieval knight, who lived in Bragança (and friend of King Alfonso VI of León and Castile), clergy at the Monastery of São Salvador in Castro de Avelãs;
• Francisco Manuel Alves (Baçal; 9 April 1865 — Baçal, 13 November 1947) - known as the Abade de Baçal (the Abbot of Baçal), was a archeologist and historian;
• Augusto César Moreno (Lagoaça; 10 November 1870 - Porto, 2 April 1955) - teacher and linguist;
• Manuel Gonçalves Cavaleiro de Ferreira (Bragança; 19 December 1911 — Lisbon; 27 April 1992) - teacher of Law, jurist and Minister of Justice in the government of António de Oliveira Salazar, responsible for the regulation of the Habeous Corpus law and creation of many tribunals.

See also

• Braganza (royal house)
• Bragança Paulista

References

Notes

External links

• Photos from Bragança